Tag Archives: San Antonio Spurs

NBA’s 1st Half Rundown

1 Reply

With the second half of the NBA underway, teams all around the league will be jockeying for positioning in two categories: Playoff positioning & lottery positioning. Before we look down the road for that situation, as well as future player movement and the end of season awards and accolades, let’s take a look at some of the questions regarding the first half of the season.

WHO’S THE 1ST HALF MVP?

The first month of the season, Paul George threw his name into the MVP ring, and it’s slightly debatable that he was the MVP of November. However, since then, it looks like Kevin Durant has pulled away from the pack….so far. I still believe that LeBron James is the best player in the game but that gap is starting to close now. With Russell Westbrook injured for most of the season so far, Durant has singlehandedly kept OKC at the top of the Western conference with his efficiently explosive scoring (31.5 PPG; 51 FG%, 41 3P%, 88 FT%), while putting up the best all around season he’s ever had (7.8 RPG, 5.5 APG, 1.5 SPG). He’s increased the value of Reggie Jackson, Jeremy Lamb, kept Serge Ibaka happy, given the team a swagger and attitude that used to be provided primarily by Westbrook.  & has stayed out of Kendrick Perkins’ way so that he can be MVP of Shaqtin’ The Fool, removing JaVale McGee from the top spot. The scary part of Durant’s game right now? I still don’t believe he’s hit his ceiling just yet. He has the athleticism & the body type to still be a devastating one-on-one defender with his freakishly long arms. He gave us a glimpse of that by taking apart Carmelo Anthony on both ends of the floor during last week’s win versus the Knicks. As crazy as this sounds, I think he can score even better too once he fully masters his post game (one will be coming within the next two years).

With Westbrook set to come back on Thursday vs. Miami, he might go back to watching Russell dominate the ball again, & I know people might feel like that’s coming, but it won’t be enough to derail the train Durant’s been driving this season. With that said, LeBron is starting to turn it up in the last few weeks with his play & the whole “Mt. Rushmore” discussion that’s been leading sports conversations the past two weeks. Just know that this is the best “Who’s the best?” rivalry brewing in the league since Bird & Magic in the 80s. It’s been a long time that we’ve had the best player in his prime have another player in his prime nipping at his heels. I’ve mentioned this before, but no one in the NBA has won 3 MVP’s in a row since Bird in 1986. Not Michael, not Magic, not Duncan, not Shaq, not Nash, no one. Usually it’s because of voters fatigue when this happens, but for some reason, it’s really hard to win 3 MVP’ s in a row. If OKC maintains the best record in the West while Miami ends up with the 2nd seed in the East, there is no way LeBron will break this trend unless he starts doing some historical-type things in the next two months. 

On a side note, even though it is a better cast, does anyone else feel like the Heat team is starting to have a 2009-2010 Cavalier feel to them or is it just me? LeBron has to do EVERYTHING for this team to win most nights, especially since Wade has been hurt for most of the season. I know we’re dealing with a new dynamic on this Heat team with this constructed Big 3 (depending on how you feel about Bosh), but should we actually even be calling this team The Big 3 anymore? With injuries the last two years, Wade has become a full fledged Robin to LeBron’s Batman, but now it seems like most nights he’s in the Bat Cave guiding/directing Batman of any trouble on the GPS monitors. He’s barely beating up the bad guys anymore. When Durant asked Wade to “Show Me, don’t Tweet me” earlier this fall, I didn’t think he meant to show him this. What’s worst, it looks like Chris Bosh, both health and production-wise is the second best player behind LeBron this season. Who saw that coming two years ago? Do I have to scrap the costume analogy & have Bosh rocking the Robin outfit now? What outfit does Wade wear now? Alfred’s? This is all so confusing.　

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE BOROUGH?

Yes, what happened to the New York teams? Both the New York Knicks & The Brooklyn Nets are the most overrated teams in the NBA so far. The Nets are paying $80M+ in luxury taxes to dethrone the Heat, yet are under .500, currently 7th in the East; and are fighting to catch the Toronto Raptors (yes, I had to say the name in full) for first place in the Atlantic? A team that gave up on Rudy Gay to fulfill the lease they had in #TankCity and are now about to print playoff tickets. The only factor that they can hold on is that they have been fighting through the injury bug & haven’t had a full squad together this season, including training camp. At the same time, this is what happens to older teams, their bodies break down more frequently than before. 

Two things that made it worse:

1) They sustained lingering and major injuries to their two best players the team was being built around: Brook Lopez and Deron Williams (I’m not even including Joe Johnson in that one. I don’t give a shit if he’s an “All Star” this season). Now their older players like Kevin Garnett & Paul Pierce, who were only supposed to play a supporting role (& were struggling to play that role as I’m sure it may have been the first time in their lives they’ve been in that position), are asked to do more heavy lifting. However, they’re too old to do the heavy lifting now & Joe Johnson who’s still in his prime is playing like the 3rd best player on the roster most nights, when he should be playing like a franchise player. He gets paid like one, he even gets the All Star nods like one, but why doesn’t he play like one? 

2) Making Jason Kidd the coach of the Nets when they were hell bent on getting to the Finals this year was the wrong move. I didn’t like the move initially, but came around when the KG/Pierce/Terry trade went through and I figured they would stand behind Kidd in the locker room. However, that went out the window when those same guys were publicly questioning Kidd’s philosophies from earlier this season. So it goes back to what I originally thought: After all the money they spent on the roster, why didn’t they just go after George Karl or Lionel Hollins, experienced coaches that have been successful coaching veterans & teams close to a title already? Again they’re spending $80M+ in luxury taxes alone. Why not spend a little extra on a proven coach instead of a novice like Kidd? If the goal was to go all in, then they shouldn’t have hired Kidd. That is a lot of pressure to put on a first time coach with no coaching experience who just finished taking his uniform off as a player a month before that.

As far as the Knicks go……actually, let’s ask a more important question….

WILL CARMELO LEAVE THE KNICKS?

Oh boy, here we go again with the “Will Melo stay or go?” rumors, only this time, I actually don’t blame Melo for this. The team is poorly constructed, they have a lot of the same parts on the team; no one shares the ball; outside of Chandler, none of their big men play defense; & like Brooklyn, were looking to depend on guys like Metta World Peace & Kenyon Martin to do the defensive dirty work, but they’ve both been shipping out DNP-CDs like an unsigned artist. I blame the Knicks management for this season, and I do for this reason. I’ve said this before about Melo, he is who he is at this point. He’s a great scorer who doesn’t make his teammates better, and this is not changing after 10 years in the league. I still don’t believe you can win a title with Carmelo being your best player……..BUT if you really want to make him your franchise gem, here’s what needs to be done.

You have to have a PG that will keep Melo & everyone else happy with their amounts of touches, someone in the locker room who can assume vocal leadership on the team until Melo takes over that role, & bigs that will play physical defense & clean everything up on the boards. You can’t trade for Bigs like Andrea Bargnani who basically plays soft, you can’t continue to resign guys like JR Smith & pick up guys like old World Peace, & you can’t have PGs like Ray Felton who’s not gonna distribute the ball to make everyone else happy. Pablo Prigioni is more of a pass-first PG but he’s close to the end of his career & he just got into the league last season.

It’s no surprise that they were going to fall back from last year’s pace, but 12 games under .500 by the All Star game? I didn’t see that one coming. With that said, I feel like Melo should stay where he is. Not every star in the NBA is destined to win a title. History is littered with Hall of Famers who have no rings. Plus there’s only a few places where you can be a star in a major market and get paid the big bucks; the cap space frees up after next season; your wife gets to be a star in the same city where you live (she probably doesn’t get in the roster for the Think Like a Man movie living out in Denver); if you leave for the Lakers, the pressure will be waaay worse than it’ll be in New York. You may as well take the money, stay famous, and run.

Between the Knicks and the Nets, the New York basketball scene right now resembles the New York hip hop scene. Most of their biggest stars (while still good) have hit their prime and peaks during the last decade, there’s no new young stars coming into the horizon anytime soon, and their biggest competition from the South, the Midwest, the West Coast, and Toronto have all surpassed them. Where’s that Funkmaster Flex bomb drop when you need it?　

CAN PORTLAND KEEP THIS UP?

To put it in simple terms: Yes! They failed consistently in trying to build a winner with the Jailblazer era, then fell on bad luck with Brandon Roy & Greg Oden’s health, but now they are at a good place. In LaMarcus Aldridge, Damian Lilliard, & Nicolas Batum, the Trailblazers have finally found a foundation that they can build the future on & have the right pieces so far around them to be around for a good while. The only issues with this team is how will they get points consistently in the paint when the game slows down & they are playing in a 7-game series against San Antonio for example. Aldridge is a top 3 Power Forward at worst in the game right now, but his strength is facing the basket & hitting fading turnaround jumpers. In the playoffs, you got to get baskets & create fouls in the paint. Aldridge does have solid moves in the post, so you have to hope he alters his game a little more at that point to mix it up a little bit more in the paint. He’s the only big on the roster that can get points down low. The other factor is Lilliard’s legs. Will they be fatigued after playing in all 5 events for Star weekend? After being selected as an all star, he should have automatically been removed from having to play in the Rising Stars Game. I’m not sure why it’s still mandatory for him to suit up All star Friday for, no fan will be insulted if he skips out. More importantly, the Blazers are going to need him for their playoff push, & seeing that this will be his first go-around in the playoffs in years, it’ll be a shame if he’s shot physically in April . 

IS SAN ANTONIO THE NBA’S VERSION OF GROUNDHOG DAY?

Look at it this way: every year we expect them to fall off the cliff. In 2011, when they lost in Round 1 to Memphis, we poured the dirt over them. What did they do the next year? Made it to the conference Finals before losing in six to Oklahoma City, which included losing the last four games of the series. We looked at OKC’s roster, realized their age & that none of their core guys were in their prime yet, and then we poured dirt over the Spurs again. After some trades & injuries to the Thunder, the Spurs were still not expected to win the West. They met up on Memphis again in the Conference Finals and you legitimately wondered if they had enough to beat the Grizzlies front line. One week later, they swept up Memphis. Two weeks after that, they were within a Ray Allen three in Game 6 or winning the Finals & putting serious doubt on LeBron’s legacy & that of Miami’s Big 3. Now everyone’s talking about the Thunder again, the Clippers, Blazers, Rockets, Warriors, etc., & the Spurs have been depleted by injuries. OKC leads the West by 4 games. Well, after the dust settled on the first half of the season, guess who’s second? I’m not going to doubt them anymore. I believe the Thunder is the best team in the West, especially when Westbrook gets back, but still, I’m putting away the shovel.

IS INDIANA THE NBA’S VERSION OF THE SEATTLE SEAHAWKS?

When I look at this team, I can kinda see where the comparison might come from actually, especially pertaining to defence. However, I’ll take you back right now, they more remind me of the 1993 Knicks team. 

Back in 1991, the Knicks got taken apart by the Bulls in the playoffs on the way to the Bulls first NBA title. In 1992, they took Jordan’s Bulls to 7 games before getting blown out during the last game. Chicago then went on to repeat as the champions. The next season, New York got the number one seed in the East, finishing 2nd overall in the NBA to the Phoenix Suns in Charles Barkley’s first year as a Sun (they had one of the all-time underrated brawls ever). They had the best defence in the league; a deep and stacked roster (picking up PG Doc Rivers in the off-season trade for PG Mark Jackson); Coach Pat Riley had given the team a tough swagger that Ewing, Oakley, and the rest of the team followed; they developed John Starks into a highly confident starter (that could have made the All Star Game that year) who wasn’t afraid of Jordan, Pippen or anyone else in the NBA. 

In 2012, the Pacers got taken apart by the Heat in the playoffs on their way to their first NBA in the Big 3 Era. Last season, Indiana took Miami to 7 games before getting blown out during the last game. This season, the Pacers are doing everything short of selling their first born children to get the number one seed in the East, and are currently fighting Oklahoma City for the best record in the NBA. They have the best defence in the league; they have a deep and stacked roster (trading for PF Luis Scola in the off-season while recently picking up Andrew Bynum); Coach Frank Vogel has given the team a tough swagger that Roy Hibbert, Paul George, David West, and the rest of the team follows. They developed Lance Stephenson into a highly confident starter (that could have made the All Star game this season) that isn’t afraid of LeBron, Wade, or anyone else in the NBA. 

With the Knicks, they took a 2-0 lead in the ’93 Eastern Conference Finals before losing the next 4 games to Chicago in a series that had classic moments (ie. Starks dunk on the Bulls, MJ’s 54, Charles Smith sequence). We’re only at the all star break so far, so we don’t know if history will continue to repeat itself. However, the one thing that history has taught us, is that as important as home court advantage is in the playoffs, if you are to be a championship team, you have to be able to win on the road. Home court is important because if a game goes to the limit, you want that last game to be on your floor, but it won’t mean anything if you can’t win on the road. Unfortunately for them, Miami has proven in the last few years that they can win playoff road games too, including at Conseco Fieldhouse. So for their sake, they better hope they can get to a seventh game, or as the Knicks learned back in 1993, the fight to get to the the #1 seed won’t mean anything.

MOST SURPRISING TEAM?

A few teams are in the mix for this one this season. I personally didn’t see Toronto being over .500 at this stage of the season. They are looking to leave #TankCity & we’ll get into that in the revised #TankCity Edition after the trade deadline. Portland gets consideration as well as currently being in a 3-way tie for 3rd place in the West, when the expectation was that they would be fighting for the 8th seed with the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Dallas Mavericks. A spot that Golden St. currently resides in, which is a little shocking to me at the moment too. I think we’d have to pick the Phoenix Suns hands down. Going into the pre-season, looking at the their roster, you were unsure how much D-League games they’d be able to win, much less NBA games. However, with the emergence of Goran Dragic and Eric Bledsoe, coupled with the improvement of players like Gerald Green & Miles Plumblee, this team has taken flight. However, the most important factor is that the team has completely bought into 1st year coach Jeff Hornacek’s philosophies. He has to be in the running for coach of the year at the very least, if not the sole frontrunner. This team was supposed to be building for the future. Instead, they have surpassed Golden State in the West, swept the Pacers, defeated Golden St twice, beat down the Clippers, Houston, & has stepped up in the playoff race. The 2nd half of the year will be a lot tougher (including April where 6 of their 8 opponents are playoff contenders), so it remains to be seen if they will come back down to earth. With that said, they will be a tough out for the last playoff seed, especially once Bledsoe comes back.

Cal Cee // South Shore Ave

Follow me on Twitter or email me at southshoreave@gmail.com

The Tunnel & The Light

1 Reply

Wow!

Incredible!

My stomach’s queasy.

My head hurts.

I need a drink…..

These are the things that were rattling through my mind after watching the epic Game 6 nail biter between the Miami Heat & the San Antonio Spurs, the first truly great game of a weirdly played series. This is probably the weirdest NBA Finals that I can remember watching.  This NBA Finals resembles one of the Rocky boxing scenes where Rocky throws continuous flurries of jabs, and haymakers that all land because the boxer during the exchange forgets to try to defend any of the punches coming his way.  Only to then have it happen to him minutes later in the scene when it’s his turn to drop the gloves, and his opponent starts wailing on him.  The only thing that’s missing right now is Adrianne crying uncontrollably on Miami’s courtside seats beside the white haired woman.  The repeated blowouts, the lapses of concentration from both teams, the flurries of runs from both teams from game to game, if you didn’t know any better, you would think this pattern of win one-lose one is as choreographed and staged as those Rocky scenes before the director says cut.  Outside of Game 1, this has been an odd series to follow and watch… until Tuesday night.  With the stakes being high and everything on the line for both teams: from the way San Antonio controlled the game for three quarters, to the frantic Miami comeback and finish, it will go down as the best game of the year as well as one of the best NBA Finals game ever, as it’s destined to be replayed over and over again on NBA TV.  As we go into Game 7, here are a few things to recap:

THE SPURS BLEW A WASTED OPPORTUNITY.   More importantly, they wasted an absolute throwback game from Tim Duncan.  Back in his prime, around the time when he was collecting back to back MVPs & winning titles every other year, he would drop the hammer down during elimination games when his team needed it most.  As he gets older, there are only so many games like this that this 37-year old great has left in the reserves.  Sensing that he was so close to winning his 5th ring in his career, he came out and put on a clinic on the Heat as if he were going after his 1st, scoring 25 points in the first half alone.  The most he has scored in any half in his whole playoff career.  He raised the energy of his teammates, while killing the spirit of the Heat players and sucking the life out of the arena.  By the end of the 3rd quarter, it looked as if Miami was dazed and defeated.  Then in the 4th, Miami turned up the defence, and the Spurs were giving them back the ball like an undercooked Rib Eye to a waiter at a steakhouse. Before you knew it, the game was tied and it became a dogfight until the final buzzer of OT.  This was the time where the Spurs players were supposed to help Duncan out.  If they even took care of the ball half as bad as they did and made their free throws, we would be talking about how incredible Timmy’s Game 6 performance was, and trying to figure out where to rank it in historical context of the NBA Finals history.  If San Antonio loses this game tonight, this throwback game gets tossed on the closet floor like an old T-shirt & no one will remember it, which is a damn shame.  Duncan was supposed to leave American Airlines Arena early Wednesday morning with the Larry O’Brien trophy and possibly his 4th NBA Finals MVP.  Instead, they face the task of being the first team since the 1978 Washington Bullets to win a Game 7 NBA Finals on the road.  I’m still shaking my head here….

LEBRON’S BAD/GREAT GAME.   Years from now we’ll look at the stats of the game & say, “Wow, LeBron really came through with that triple double”, or “King James really owned that game”, but anyone watching that game was wondering if he was slowly becoming undone by the pressure of having their backs against the wall.  Taking bad shots and still looking to distribute the ball even when the Spurs had their foot on his team’s throat, it took his headband getting knocked off for him to unleash all of his athletic talents on the floor.  Taking over the 4th quarter with 18 points and imposing his effort and will on the game, the Heat completed their maniacal comeback and had a 3 point lead with less than 90 seconds to play……then Tony Parker drained that 3 in his face to tie the game.  All of a sudden, LeBron made two critical mistakes, Parker capitalized, & the Spurs were up by five.  Had it not been for Ray Allen’s beautiful 3 of his own to tie the game at 95, this would have haunted LeBron’s offseason as much as when he lost to the Mavericks two years ago.  If you compared him to Duncan through three quarters, Duncan was leaving everything on the floor while LeBron looked like he was coasting through a game vs. the Bobcats in January.  When someone is as good as he is, shouldn’t we know it at all times?  This is the 3rd time in 4 years that he looked as if his brain was subconsciously checking out during an elimination game where his team was down in the series.  Call me spoiled by the Bird/Magic/Jordan era that I grew up in, but I’d like to never question the mindset of the best player in the league during one of his biggest moments.  Once you enter those prime years as the best player in the league, those moments cannot be wasted by these things.  Not when you’re staking your claim alongside the all-time greats.  Even if he’s missing shots, we should be leaving the game saying, “Man, he was really off tonight”, instead of thinking, “Is he checking out again”???  Having a conversation with my friend Les last night, he said it best:  “It’s almost as if LeBron needs the perfect circumstances around him to get the optimal performance out of himself”.  Right opponent, right situation depending on where they are in the series, he will dominate & almost eclipse that game itself like the sun.  If his team is down in an elimination game and the supreme pressure is on him, you can see that weary signature look on his face. When the pressure hits like it did late in Game 6, you can almost see the wires frying in his head.   It’s a harsh reality for him (almost unfair), but when you win 4 MVP’s and you’re in the prime of your career surrounded by two All Stars in Wade & Bosh, that expectation comes with the territory.

WHY CRAWFORD?  The NBA for years have been fighting the image of them fixing games or having conspiracy-like overtones surrounding their playoff games, with everything coming to an apex when the Tim Donahy scandal happened.  So why would the NBA assign Joey Crawford, the NBA referee with the most negative personal history against the Spurs to ref such a pivotal game?  Why even entertain the thought of putting him out there?  I mean, it’s not exactly a secret that the Spurs have past issues with Crawford.  I don’t care if he’s in the Finals rotation, I’m almost positive they could have gotten another competent referee to ref Game 6.  I’m not saying he affected the outcome of the game & I don’t blame him for the Spurs giving up the victory Tuesday night, but by doing this, you understand why the conspiracy theorists continue to come out the woodworks.  Anyhow he refs Game 7…..

SIDELINE NOTES

The funny thing about this series is that after the excitement of Game 6, and the generating buzz of a Finals Game 7, it might not even match the buzz created by Jay-Z & Samsung during Game 5, taking over the whole commercial block between the end of the 2nd Quarter and the Halftime show.  The announcement of his new LP, “Magna Carta Holy Grail” was in short, an incredible marketing ploy for both parties.  Samsung found an innovative way to promote their phones, tablets, and apps, while Hov started an innovative buzz on his new LP, while at the same time going platinum before his LP touched a shelf or an online store.  Between this & his simmering takeover of the Sports Agency world, he is redefining the game on how to do business in music and sports.  You can read about the Samsung deal here…..  8 game winning streak huh?  Can the Blue Jays come back to take one of the wild card spots?  It’s June, it’s not too late, but they have to continue to play as well on the field as they apparently did in the offseason…..  I like the move of Jason Kidd becoming a head coach.  I think he has a great basketball mind as one of the best point guards to ever play in the NBA.  As long as he has the right assistant coaches surrounding him, he can definitely make this work to his favor…. if he was coaching The Raptors.  For a playoff team with title aspirations in the next two to three years in Brooklyn, this was the wrong move.  Lionel Hollins or George Karl gets hired to coach this team?  I’m fine with this. I feel like this was a splashy move to appease the owner as well as the media, but they should only be worried about getting wins, not making publicity wins in the New York market…..

My Game 7 prediction… I’ll stick with my original prediction & say the Heat win tonight, and by 10+ points.  I don’t see how the Spurs come back & take Game 7 after what happened on Tuesday, no matter how much it bucks the trend that no team has won 2 straight games. It’s extremely hard to win a Finals Game 7 on the road. IF by miracle or prayer Tim Duncan repeats his Game 6 performance, then it will be a much closer game. The crowd’s energy & the calls will be on the Heat’s side, & by midnight, they should be popping bottles. Hopefully, we don’t get another version of this.

 

Cal Cee // South Shore Ave

To subscribe to The Baseline Blog, click onto the Follow button or by entering your email address.

NBA Finals Breakdown (Part 2)

2 Replies

CLICK HERE TO READ PART ONE.

In Part 2 of today’s post, I’m going to give a quick breakdown of the positional matchups in the NBA Finals series between the San Antonio Spurs and The Miami Heat with a boxing-style score count. Yes, inventive I know!

POINT GUARD

Mario Chalmers vs. Tony Parker

2013 Playoff Stats: 

Chalmers: 8.9 PPG // 2.1 RPG // 3.5 APG // 77.5% FT // 30% 3P // 9.62 EFF Rating

Parker     : 23 PPG // 3.9 RPG // 7.2 ASG // 86.7% FT // 37.5% 3P // 21.8 EFF

Doesn’t seem fair does it?

Chalmers is going up against a point guard that Charles Barkley refers to as the best PG in the NBA.  I’m not 100% sure I agree with it, but by far he is the most underappreciated.  Most people don’t have him ranked in their top 5 PG list much less the top 3 (where he should be ranked). He’s the best player on the best team in the West and has been for at least the last two seasons, officially taking the reins from Tim Duncan & Manu Ginobili.  Chalmers & Norris Cole will take turns (as well as LeBron for small stretches) trying to corral Parker, as well as trying to make open jumpers & threes to offset the damage Parker will do to them on the other end of the floor.  This matchup can really hurt the Heat here, they might need to throw constant double teams (& possibly holy water) & hope he turns the ball over.

Score: Spurs 10, Heat 8 

SHOOTING GUARD

Dwyane Wade vs. Danny Green 

Wade: 14.1 PPG // 4.9 RPG // 4.9 APG // 44% FG // 74% FT // 25% 3P

Green:  9.6 PPG // 4.1 RPG // 1.9 APG // 45% FG // 71% FT // 43% 3P

** Disclaimer – This comparison is about Wade, the player in this playoffs, not the normal, healthier version. **

In most cases, Wade would dominate this matchup on a “Hakeem on Robinson” type level, but with his knees betraying him, playoff inconsistency, & struggling to fully embrace the Robin costume (let’s face it, they don’t even talk about Wade anymore when the Heat’s name comes up, & he ran Miami for years.  He’s only 31, but he’s slowly coming out of his prime.  It’s a hard adjustment).  This matchup is a little closer than you think.  Green’s not going to match up with him scoring wise, but defensively he’s going to pester Wade for stretches at a time.  The key to this matchup is for Wade to keep moving without the ball, make quick decisions, and be aggressively smart to get Green & his teammates in foul trouble. But will we even see the old Wade this series?  If so, then this series might be done a lot faster than most imagined.  The SG spot may be the most important matchup in the next two weeks to be honest, especially when a well-rested Manu Ginobili enters the game.  I actually can’t wait for him to go against Wade for seven games, in all their elite level, Euro-stepping glory.  I’m going to lean towards Wade here, “barely”, but I think he might have just enough impactful moments to win this matchup here…Just enough.

Score: Heat 10, Spurs 9

SMALL FORWARD

LeBron James vs. Kawhi Leonard 

James: 26.2 PPG // 7.3 RPG // 6.4 ASG // 51.4% FG // 77.2% FT // 38.7% 3P

Leonard: 13 PPG // 8 RPG // 1.1 ASG // 56.5% FG // 59.4% FT // 41.7% 3P

Nothing to see here, keep it moving and please use the side exits…..

……..I like Leonard,  I think he is a really solid player with a bright future.  However, asking someone to guard a 4-time MVP in the prime of his career, carving out his legacy along the very best players in NBA history, while also giving up 30+ pounds to the most physically imposing, small forward the game has ever seen, is too much to ask of anyone much less a second year player. NEXT! 

Score: Heat 10, Miami 7

POWER FORWARD

Chris Bosh vs Tim Duncan 

Bosh: 12.3 PPG // 6.6 RPG // 1.2 APG // 45.7% FG // 73.3% FT // 48.4% 3P

Duncan: 17.8 PPG // 9.2 RPG // 2.1 APG // 46% FG // 79.7% FT // 1.7 BPG

As much as people like to kill Bosh for his photo-bombing awareness, his ability to get clowned relentlessly for being himself, and everything else in between, he’s still an 8-time All Star who is very likely on the path to the Hall of Fame (sorry, it’s true), especially if he can add two more rings &/or 2-3 more All Star bids to his resume.  However, he is entering the series in a slump, averaging less than 10 points in the last 4 straight games. What’s the worst way to try to break a slump?  Facing off against Tim Duncan in a seven game series.  His focus on taking away the things that you love to do – like he did against Zach Randolph in the Western Conference Finals – is almost unprecedented.  We know the old story: he’s boring to watch, his game puts people to sleep, but the consistency of his greatness is almost unmatched.  I can throw all the stats out at you, but this may be my favorite one yet:  in his rookie year at age 21, he made the All-NBA First Team.  Sixteen years later at age 37, he made the All-NBA First Team.  Has that even happened before???? He sees the end coming soon, but with the way Roy Hibbert look like Mikan, Wilt, & Bill Russell all rolled into one against Miami, I can’t see how he doesn’t do similar damage to them.  He’s as smart mentally as Hibbert is physically imposing. I expect to see him at the line a lot, getting the Heat’s big men to use up most of their 6 fouls each.

Score: Spurs 10, Heat 9

CENTER

Udonis Haslem vs. Tiago Splitter 

Haslem: 6.3 PPG // 3.9 RPG // 0.9 SPG // 61% FG // 53.8% FT

Splitter: 6.8 PPG // 3.7 RPG // 1.8BPG // 68.2% FG // 78.3% FT

Both Haslem and Splitter are role playing big men, who make their bones playing off of their superstar teammates by collecting garbage points, finishing dump off passes, setting solid screens off the pick and roll, and playing tough defense.  They do it with slightly different styles, but both get the job done.  It’s an even matchup but I give the slight edge to Haslem.  Playing in his 4th Finals will make him more well-adjusted to the whole experience then a young player like Splitter, I’m expecting him to make less mistakes as the series prolongs.

Score: Heat 10, Spurs 9

BENCH

Both teams have a pretty solid bench, Miami: Allen, Birdman, Battier, Miller, Cole, Anthony; Spurs: Ginobilli, Diaw, Bonner, Neal, Cory Joseph. For Miami, Allen, Battier, & Miller MUST make their open shots here.  They struggled the whole Pacer series, and versus a team who averaged the 5th most bench points in the league, they will quickly fall behind if this happens again.  The Spurs have been more consistent out of the two teams throughout the playoffs, so the needle tilts to their side on this one.

Score: Spurs 10, Heat 9

COACHING

Both coaching staff in my opinion are the best in the game today.  Eric Spoelstra doesn’t get enough credit for coaching the team this season.  27–game winning streaks doesn’t just happen because you roll out the balls to your great players, then sit back, & enjoy the show.  A lot of it involves having your players dedicated to the system, while keeping them motivated for perfection in every game.  He built the system around the unique talents of his best player while making sure Wade & Bosh were having a major impact.  He brought a guy off the street (Birdman) and blended him in almost seamlessly. But this will be his biggest test, matching Xs & Os with Gregg Popovich, a legendary coach who’s 4-0 in the NBA Finals…… who has now had 10 days to plan for this series.

Score: Spurs 10, Heat 9

PREDICTION

Game 1 is probably the most critical; a team that rests this long against the Spurs usually comes out rusty.  While a team like the Heat coming off of a grueling series, will still be in game-time rhythm.  If the Spurs can shake off the rust & steal this game, it can potentially be a big blow to the Heat, as the Spurs will only get sharper as the series progresses.  Ultimately, I’m going with the Heat in 7 because they have the trump card in James, who as I mentioned before, is by far the best player in the NBA playing at his absolute peak, and in basketball, that counts for a lot. His game almost has no flaws right now, and having that specimen on your team is like having a universal key that can open any door in the building.  As long as he’s constantly attacking this defense and causing problems in the paint with his scoring and playmaking, it will eventually wear the Spurs down…. even if they only wear down in Game 7.

Cal Cee // South Shore Ave

To subscribe to The Baseline Blog, click onto the Follow button or by entering your email address.